Sports Tips & Advice

6 Basic Skills for Group Rides

By Gale Bernhardt

You don't have to be a competitive cyclist to enjoy the benefits of group rides. Utilized correctly, regular group sessions can motivate you, improve your fitness and make any ride more enjoyable. However, if you lack the technique or the fitness to ride with a group, the experience can be frustrating and leave you riding alone. In a worst case scenario, lack of skills causes you to crash, perhaps taking others down with you.

To help you get started, let's look at a few group ride basics.

Finding the Right Group for You

When you search for a group to ride with, find out their general policies. Some meet for "no-drop" rides. This means that no rider is left behind and you can count on an experienced rider to stay with you. Inquire if someone in the organization teaches group riding etiquette.

Another option is to join a drop-in ride. These often begin in the parking lot of a local bike shop, with the pace of the group determined by the individuals or specific goals of the ride. Often, there are designated A, B and C groups to accommodate differences in riding speed.

Popular Activities Near You

Ashburn, VA

The third most common choice is a race thinly disguised as a group ride. These are usually the fastest and most aggressive rides available. These rides are for very experienced cyclists and carry catchy names like, "Everyone Gets Dropped", "Ride Till You Puke" and "Wednesday World Championships." You have been officially forewarned just by reading the title.

Your local bike shop is a good place to start if you're looking for a group ride in your area. Most are associated with a club, bike shop or racing team.

Basic Skills

A few basic skills are needed in order to successfully ride with any group. You must be capable of riding a straight line, controlling your speed, anticipating possible problems and watching the road ahead of you. At the same time, be alert for activity in your peripheral vision.

1. Hold your line: If you have watched a professional cycling race, you know that every rider needs to "hold a line." This means that cyclists need to be capable of riding a line parallel with the edge of the road.

Practice this skill by riding 12 to 24 inches to the right of the white shoulder line while trying to keep parallel with that line.

2. The slipstream: Some group rides practice staying together as one large mass—more or less—with little movement among the group.

Other group rides incorporate pace lines—or some version thereof—into their sessions. In its most basic form, a pace line occurs when one rider pulls a line of other riders behind them. Each person follows the rider in front of them by staying within a few inches to a few feet of their leader's rear wheel. This area of least wind resistance is known as a slipstream.

Staying in the lead rider's slipstream is called drafting. Riders that are in the draft position save upwards of 30 percent of energy compared to the lead rider. If you've ever had a chance to draft, you know that riding 20 miles per hour is significantly easier when you're following rather than leading. The difference is even more pronounced in a head wind.

3. Control your speed: The lead rider in a pace line can stay at the front for just a few seconds or for several minutes. When you join a group that is rotating the lead position and it is time for you to lead, resist pouring on the gas to show everyone how strong you are. A pace line is happiest when the pace is steady. Fast accelerations or jerky braking motions disrupt the line and can cause a crash.

4. Keep eyes and ears open: The first person in the group can see clear road. Thus, they need to point out road hazards—as do the rest of the people in the line. Pointing out hazards and verbal communication skills are important. For this reason, do not use headphones in a group riding situation.

When you are following someone, avoid getting a visual fixation on their rear wheel. Look several feet ahead, keeping the distance between your front wheel and the rider ahead of you in your peripheral vision. Watch for road hazards as well as motion to either side of the pace line.

Listen for cars approaching from the rear. A rear view mirror mounted on your helmet or glasses can be very helpful when watching for cars.

Maintain the pedaling motion of the other riders in your peripheral vision. Watch for sudden changes in cadence—this usually signals some sort of problem.

5. Anticipate problems: If you are riding in windy conditions or it is a hilly course, anticipate changes in the group or peloton. When the peloton changes directions, sometimes the weaker riders are no longer sheltered from the wind and they fall off the pace. The same is true for a hilly course. Riders that can usually stay with the group on flat roads can fall off the pace on a hill.

Get accustomed to watching for signs that a rider is struggling. This includes having difficulty finding the right gear, breathing like a steam engine or constantly looking over their shoulder.

You don't want to be stuck behind a struggling rider if you are feeling strong. Pay attention to the signals so you can maneuver yourself into a good position.

6. Practice: This column just scratched the surface of group riding skills. Once you master the basics, you should continue to hone your skills. A good resource on mass riding is Racing Tactics for Cyclists by Thomas Prehn, even if you are not a competitive cyclist. Remember: in group rides smart riders often have the advantage over strong riders.

About the Author

Gale Bernhardt

Gale Bernhardt was the USA Triathlon team coach at the 2003 Pan American Games and 2004 Athens Olympics. She's worked as one of the few World Cup coaches and delivered coached education training for the Triathlon Union's Sport Development Team. She has coached Olympic road racers, World Cup mountain bike riders and Leadville 100 racers. Thousands of athletes have had successful training and racing experiences using Gale's ready-to-use, easy-to-follow training plans.

Discuss This Article

Cycling Tips, Training & Advice

23 Fun Facts You Didn't

Know About the Tour de

France

Have you ever wondered how many calories riders burn during the Tour de France, or how many tires they go through?...

Within 2 Miles

Activities near you will have this indicator!

Within 2 Miles

ACTIVE is the leader in online event registrations from 5k running races and marathons to softball leagues and local events. ACTIVE also makes it easy to learn and prepare for all the things you love to do with expert resources, training plans and fitness calculators.

Frequently Asked Questions

ACTIVE Advantage is the premium membership program of ACTIVE, designed to support and encourage your active lifestyle by providing exclusive discounts on thousands of activities on ACTIVE. No matter what your passions are, it is our mission to make it cheaper and easier for you to pursue the activities you love.

The 30-day trial of the ACTIVE Advantage membership allows you to check out the program for yourself before starting a full annual membership. During this trial period you have full access to member benefits, including all ACTIVE registration discounts, access to free event entries, gear discounts and more. If you decide during the trial period that you don't want to continue the membership, just let us know. Otherwise, at the end of your 30 day trial we will extend your member benefits for a full year at the current annual membership fee.

If you sign up for the 30-day ACTIVE Advantage trial membership you'll receive full access to all member benefits during your trial period. When the 30 days of the trial are up, your benefits will automatically upgrade to the annual membership which currently costs $64.95 per year. That's less than $6 per month to enjoy the program all year round.

Members can receive discounts when registering for events on ACTIVE.com.

Simply follow the steps below to redeem your discount

Step 1: Find an event on ACTIVE and login. Use the ACTIVE directory to find an event. Click the login button in the upper right corner of the event details page. You will be re-directed to a login screen. After logging in, you will be sent back to the event details page.

Step 2: Click the "Register Now" button to sign up for the event. Complete all required registration fields and proceed to payment screen. When logged in as an Advantage member, your discount will automatically apply at the end of registration.

Step 3: Submit registration and receive discount. The discount amount will display in your shopping cart and will be deducted from your registration fees. The registration discount will vary and is excluded from some events. If the discount does not appear in your shopping cart, the event is not eligible.